Ground broken for Independence Park in Travis

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- TRAVIS -- When Independence Park reopens sometime next year, Staten Islanders taking advantage of the new green space at the corner of Victory Boulevard and Glen Street can celebrate the reclamation of some once overgrown territory.

Set to open by July 4, the park will boast new paths, pavements and plantings, as well as benches and a flag pole at a central gathering space large enough to accommodate the crowds that gather for the community’s popular Independence Day parade.

Currently, the three-acre plot is home to trees, wild bushes and gravel, and adjacent to an abandoned cemetery dating to 1680. Half of this property land will be renovated.

The first step toward the much-needed makeover took place Nov. 9 in Travis with a groundbreaking attended by city Parks Department officials, as originally reported by the Advance last week.

It was the fourth groundbreaking for a park on Staten Island this year. And another followed in New Dorp Beach later that day.

“In this fastest-growing county in the state of New York, we have to maintain open public spaces,” said Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe, flanked by new Borough Commissioner Adena Long, Deputy Borough President Edward Burke, representatives for City Councilman James Oddo (R-Mid Island/Brooklyn) and Nick and Janice Blanchard, of the Travis Fourth of July Parade Committee.

Mrs. Blanchard was excited about the renovation. She said the construction fence was erected on Nov. 8 and safety measures have been taken for some of the trees on the site.

“It’s a gateway to the Travis community. When you come into Travis now, you’re going to see a beautiful park,” she said.

It’s the second ongoing park project in the West Shore neighborhood. Construction began on Schmul Park, located just blocks away, two months ago, and is also expected to be completed in 2011. It will link to another park — a huge one at 2,200 acres — under long-term construction: FreshKills Park.

“These parks and the ballfield have been neglected for a long time,” Mrs. Blanchard said, mentioning that the neighborhood is getting its fair share of renovations from the Parks Department.

The project will preserve nearby historic Sylvan Grove Cemetery, a collection of crumbling headstones, demarcating the final resting places of Revolutionary War soldiers, Civil War veterans and scions of Staten Island’s historic families.

“This is a park that will teach history on Staten Island,” said Mark Russo, president of Friends of Abandoned Cemeteries, one of several community organizations that pushed for the park’s transformation.

The park’s name and the flag that will fly in it also got a thumbs-up from the community, which celebrated its 100th Travis Fourth of July parade last year.

“Patriotism is a lot of this community. This community is very proud to fly the American flag year-round. We’ll be happy to have one at the gateway there,” said Mrs. Blanchard.